Beckoning Lyght
by J Linz
Summary: Tabitha Lyght deals with life without J'onn J'onzz and tries to focus on her responsibilities. She eventually moves back to Gotham City. X-over of Justice League Unlimited and Marvel fandom. M for language. Part 2 of Speed of Lyght. I do not own DC, Marvel or Justice League characters. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
1. Back to Basics

Chapter One: Back to Basics

It **would **be raining, she thought as she rang the doorbell. She didn't know what to do, who to go to; she had too little options. It seemed like an eternity but the door finally opened and her best friend gave her a surprised look.

"Tabs! Get in here before you catch cold…" Jamila actually had to drag her best friend inside the house. Tabitha was drenched and she looked as if she was coming down with a cold as it was. She blocked out whatever Jamila was talking about and dragged herself not into the kitchen as she always did but into the living room. Wet clothes and all, she plopped down onto the couch, ignoring the stare she received from the college professor. She still felt numb and really didn't want to move from that position, "… Tabitha?" Jamila tried. The white-haired woman had just sat there, not even looking at her friend. She had to be out of it; she wasn't even wearing her t-shirt head wrap to cover her hair, "What's wrong, hon?" Jamila asked. It was all that was needed to make the tears finally come out of her eyes. She bit her lip to keep from sobbing but looking into the worried brown eyes of her best friend made her finally break down. She opened her mouth to tell her what exactly happened but sobs escaped instead of words. Jamila forgot that her soaked friend was ruining her couch and immediately hugged her. She had a feeling what this was about and it saddened her; Tabitha had been too late to make up with J'onn. She held in her own tears but Jamila knew that it wouldn't be too long before they both were sobbing.

It had been a while since she cried like that; the last time was when she kept her feelings about killing her best friend bottled up for over a year: the simulation program had been too much for her to handle. This feeling had only been bottled up inside for a few hours but it was all the more painful. It had taken a lot for her to keep her emotions at bay in front of the new Watchtower Monitor and seeing J'onn's room completely empty put a knot in her stomach. But, it all didn't hit her until she went inside the house.

"He… he's… gone…" Tabitha managed through her sobs. Jamila looked at her strangely.

"Gone? What do you mean, 'gone'? He… left the league?!" she looked at her friend in amusement. Her sobs became uncontrollable and Jamila did all she could to soothe her. It made no sense; why would he just leave? He couldn't have been **that **upset with his girlfriend to have left altogether… could he, Jamila thought.

As quickly as her outburst had been, she was quickly trying to calm down. She was distraught, of course; for whatever reasons she had, Tabitha loved J'onn. This wasn't just some ordinary fling to her; as if she ever had one before, anyway! She had traveled to the future and saw their son for crying out loud; that **had **to have meant **something**! The two were even married; everything was playing out as if they were meant to be.

But, he had left. Without even saying goodbye, she started to fume. Tabitha finally stopped sobbing, took a deep breath and hugged her best friend back.

"He… he… he didn't even have the gaddamn decency to tell me… goodbye…" fresh tears clouded her vision once more.

"What?! That… doesn't sound like him at all… why wouldn't he tell you goodbye?!" she wanted to know. Tabitha simply wiped at her tears.

"I don't know! A 'leave of absence' they fucking call it…" she shook a little. Jamila held her tighter.

"It don't matter. Nothing matters now. He made his decision… now, you gotta make yours. You have more responsibility now; you can't dwell on this."

"… Doc…"

"You can sit here and cry your ass off as long as you want. But, as soon as you step foot out that door… you can't do it, anymore. A long time ago… I thought I had met the love of my life. Everyone knew for sure that we were gonna get married and be happy. Then, he left. A good friend of mine told me that if it was meant to be, if we were truly soul mates, God would find a way to put us back together." Tabitha listened to the professor's story. She looked at her friend.

"And, then… you and Albert got married…"

"Oh… no; this wasn't Albert! So, you see it wasn't meant to be! It took me a long time to realize that. I'm not saying that you two weren't meant to be. But… if it was meant to be… he'll be back. You just can't force it or let it eat at you. It hurts; I know it does. Men do stupid shit, make dumb ass decisions, even the smartest ones!" she tried to make her laugh.

"Do you… do you think he'll come back?" she asked. Jamila thought about it but eventually shrugged.

"I wish I could say yeah to make you feel better. But, I don't know. It's out of our hands, now. It's up to J'onn now if he's coming back." she explained. Tabitha could do nothing but nod. She was glad that her new best friend was older and full of experience; had she went to her mom to discuss her feelings, to get a good cry out, it would've probably turned into an argument; the family had just gotten used to her dating J'onn.

She really needed to hear that advice as well as the honesty; she was certain that had it been any of her old high school friends or even someone from her old unit, they would've lied and told her that he would definitely be back in her life. Sure; it would've made her feel much better but it would've also put her hopes up too high: if he didn't return, it would ruin her.

Maybe the breakup was too much for him, Jamila thought. She tried to put herself in his situation: how would she have liked it if she was dating a fellow professor and the two had broken up? It made her quickly realize that she would be itching for a transfer just so she wouldn't have to see his face, especially if they were as serious as J'onn and Tabitha. It was probably torture for him the little time they had to be around each other, she also realized. Whatever the reason, Jamila wasn't going to guesstimate.

"_What the hell, J'onn?! Ah… it's no use; you wouldn't tell her that you were leaving, you ain't telling me nothing!" _she absentmindedly tried to send him a message.

"_… I'm sorry…" _his response surprised her. She wanted to ask for the answers Tabitha was searching for but decided against it; it would only cause more pain, especially if he wasn't coming back anytime soon. She simply nodded and kissed her friend on the top of her white hair.

"So… what are you gonna do?" she tried to break the silence. Tabitha slightly shook her head and took another deep breath.

"I think… I'm gonna sit here and cry a little bit more…"

* * *

She had fallen asleep on the couch and was thankful that the professor had made sure that no one bothered her; a tough task seeing that the children really wanted to spend time with her. Before letting sleep completely consume her, Tabitha made a mental promise to make it up to them. Maybe a complete tour of Watchtower or even better, Metro Tower: Clark was almost always guaranteed to be there more often than others. Her dream consisted of guiding the three on the tour and the triplets having the time of their lives. She could barely keep up with their pace as they met Clark, Diana, Wally and even Bruce put on a smile for the three! Tabitha took them to the main control room and was startled to see J'onn attending to the controls. The triplets started to run to him until he turned around. Tabitha gasped.

"… T'ony?!" she looked into his brown eyes. He smiled as the triplets hugged him, anyway.

"It's shocking to remember that the Linz gang was once this little…" he looked down at them. Tabitha approached him.

"What are you doing here?"

"Checking on you. And, I can't give you any details on the future; just know that everything is fine." he answered when she opened her mouth. She smiled a little and immediately hugged him.

"I'm fine."

"You're lying…"

"And, I'm still your mother so watch that tone! Hey, guys; go catch up with Mr. Wally." she looked down at the triplets. Not saying a word, they nodded and left, "Is this a sign or something?"

"I can't tell you."

"You're so cryptic… just like your father… wait… this **is **a sign! He's coming back, isn't he? If he wasn't… why would you be here? Unless, this is just some sort of emotional-based dream…"

"It could be. Or this could be a sign for something different. You'll figure it out soon enough, mom. By the way; how's Mr. Parker and Mr. Stark?"

"They're fine… I guess. I haven't spoken to them since… huh; since my birthday… they don't know what all I've been through! Wait… you're not here to tell me about your father; you're telling me something else…" Tabitha had to slightly smile, "Are you saying that I'm the one who needs a leave of absence from the league?"

"Maybe not a total leave of absence but… I'm pretty sure that they would want to know how you are." he hinted. She could only nod.

"T'ony… is there **anything **you can tell me about your father?"

"… you're about to wake up…" were the last words she heard her son speak. Everything went dark and she felt that she was lying on the couch. Tabitha slowly opened her eyes and saw that she was in the Lindsey living room. The lights were still on and she saw a figure coming down the stairs. She slowly sat up and looked at Jamila.

"You okay, now? Guess you'll be heading back to Metropolis, now…" she sounded almost sadden. Jamila really wanted her to at least spend the night, get some more sleep and have a clearer head before heading back to "work". Tabitha shook the sleep out of her head.

"I'll be fine. Actually… I think I need to make a trip out to New York…"

* * *

Peter opened the door and his eyes widened. He immediately embraced Tabitha.

"Tabby Cat! I've been so worried about you! Don't you **ever **leave me in the dark like that again!" he scolded as he let her in. She gave him a weak smile.

"Let's just say I've been quite busy…"

"Too busy for your best pal?" he asked. She was about to answer until Mary Jane appeared and wrapped her arms around his neck. That was when she noticed the ring on her finger. Tabitha immediately grabbed her hand and examined the ring.

"Son-of-a-bitch… wait… when did you two get engaged?!"

"A little before your ordeal. Speaking of which…" the three sat down in the living room. Tabitha shook her head.

"No; this is more important. So, when's the wedding?"

"Still talking about it. Since you're here… would you like to be a bridesmaid?" Mary Jane asked her. Tabitha gawked at her.

"Seriously?!"

"For obvious reasons, Peter couldn't ask you to be one of the groomsmen! We would love it if you'd be a part of it." she explained. Tabitha could do nothing but look at the two.

"I'd be honored…"

Tabitha and Peter were on top of the Daily Bugle building, looking out into the city. She looked at her black latex mask; it had been a while since she had worn it. Peter looked at her.

"You've been away for a long time; I think it's safe to go without the mask."

"You think so?"

"I never liked it, anyway. Who are you keeping a secret from?" he asked. She slightly smirked at him.

"I would ask you the same thing! You know, Tony revealed his identity…" she gave him a look. He sighed a little.

"Tony is a pompous ass…"

"… In an iron suit; I've heard it too many times!" a familiar voice was heard from behind. Tabitha swung around and was greeted by the familiar red and gold suit hovering above them. Tony landed on the rooftop as his mask opened up. She ran and hugged him.

"Tony!"

"Darling! It is **so **good to see you back to your old self! How you feeling?"

"Much better!"

"I heard that you guys decided to be closer to the human populace."

"Half of us now reside in Metropolis…"

"So, are you and J'onn there or…"

"… I'm in Metropolis… I don't know where J'onn is…" it pained her to think about it all over again. Had Peter not had his mask on, she would be pretty sure that he was giving her the same look that Tony was.

"Wait. Are you saying that you two… broke up?"

"No way… tell me you're joking with us!" Peter approached her. She sadly shook her head.

"I don't wanna talk about it… he's gone and I'm Monitor of Metro Tower, now." she looked away from the two. Tony hugged her tighter.

"I'm sorry, darling…" he almost whispered. For some reason, that made Tabitha a little upset and she slightly pushed him away.

"And, I don't need to be fucking babied about it! I'm fine! What are you doing here?" as quickly as she had gotten upset, Tabitha calmed down and folded her arms at Tony. He shrugged.

"If I explained it to you, it would lose you! Let's just say I was doing a few installations. I was on my way home when I saw you two. Oh, yeah; I guess a congratulation should be said." he looked at Peter.

"You heard…"

"Of course. But… I don't know if darling would be in attendance…"

"What did I just say? I'm fine! You know; it wasn't like we were gonna get married; attending my best friend's wedding ain't gonna faze me! I was asked to be a bridesmaid so… I **have **to be there!"

"I know that I can be a…"

"Asshole?" Tabitha eyed Tony. He smirked.

"I prefer a hard ass but whatever; after what you've done for me, I can't help but to care. I've seen how you two were with each other and you don't remember but I saw how he looked at you when you were suffering; he loves you. For you to simply just… brush this off… it isn't healthy."

"And you're an expert in this because…" she eyed him. Tony sighed, "I don't need any advice from someone who chases anything in a skirt! I did all of the crying I plan on doing over him on doc's couch; I ain't crying no more! The only thing I need to do now is concentrate on my responsibilities, now! And just because Peter's found someone to spend the rest of his life with doesn't mean I'm gonna sit here and sulk all because I don't have no one, now! It ain't like we were getting married, anyway; he never told anyone about us in the first place! And, why the hell are my feet wet?!" she complained. Tabitha looked down and saw that there was a puddle growing underneath her feet, "What the fuck is this shit?!" she asked; the puddle quickly started to take form. She was taken aback when it formed into a human male figure. She looked at Peter, "Um… Spidey…"

"Hydro-Man…" it seemed as though he glared at the watery blob that now formed into a man. He seemed to ignore Tabitha and Tony as he stared at Peter with piercing blue eyes.

"I've been looking for you for a long time, spider freak!" he almost growled. Peter shrugged.

"**I'm **the freak? Look in the mirror pal!" he retaliated. The blond man growled and immediately threw a blast of water towards Peter. As he was knocked to the ground after the blast, Tony immediately tried to hit Hydro-Man from behind with a proton blast. He saw the problem instantly as Hydro-Man turned back into water; the blast going through him and almost hitting Tabitha. She did a Lightning Cloud out of the way. Peter finally stood up and looked at Hydro-Man; he was clearly upset at the cheap shot! He shot webbing from each hand at the nearby buildings and used it like a slingshot to hit Hydro-Man in the face, full force; Peter wanted to catch him off guard as he was surprised at how fast Tabitha moved.

Peter was able to hit him with all of his might but the blow was not enough to keep him down. Shouting his rage, Hydro-Man called forth all the surrounding water, and soon Peter was caged in by the menacing liquid. Tabitha could do nothing but watch as Hydro-Man tried to drown her friend. Then, she wanted to smack herself; she was the only one who could truly stop the blond man.

Tabitha did another Lightning Cloud behind Hydro-Man and charged up with all of her might.

"You really picked the wrong night to piss me off…" she said and shocked him. She knew that it would kill him and it was something that she actually couldn't avoid; lightning and water were a deadly combination: something that she saw firsthand the last time she was in New York. Watching him die left an uneasy feeling in her stomach; a few years ago, she would've had no memory of the kill and therefore had no feelings about it. However, the image was enough to almost make her sick and she turned away.

Peter finally caught his breath and looked over at his friend.

"Thanks… are you okay?"

"I'm good…"

"You know, you could've taken him out earlier…" Tony looked at her. Tabitha raised an eyebrow at him.

"Excuse the fuck outta me for having a brain fart!"

"Okay, okay… it's over with; let's not jump at each other's throats about this. She did something before I was killed… that's all that matters." Peter smiled at her underneath his mask. He couldn't help but to wonder about the mental state of his friend. She had just gone through what was probably a rough breakup with someone he felt had plans on making her his wife. And then the look on her face after she killed Hydro-Man; Peter knew that she had gone through therapy for her rage but he would have never thought that seeing a dead body would be enough to make her stomach turn. Maybe that cry that Tabitha said that she had wasn't enough; maybe she really needed to talk about how she felt about… everything. He just needed to figure out how he would convince her that it was what she really needed.


	2. A Fresh Start

Chapter Two: A Fresh Start

"Tabitha… a word with you?" John approached her at her new control station. It had been a month since Tabitha was appointed Monitor of Metro Tower and it wasn't as complicated as she thought it would be. While not the actual leader, Clark was pretty much the one who issued out orders but he trusted her decisions, nonetheless. So, Tabitha not only had him to guide her but the new Monitor of Watchtower, Mr. Terrific. Metro Tower was half the size of Watchtower easily and so she also had no problems going from assigning missions to making upgrades.

She would've been a bit surprised at the formality of John's voice but remembered that he had the demeanor of military personnel; she was pretty sure that he would've made a good captain. She had been surprised to learn of the new Green Lantern's romantic interests, especially seeing that Vixen was the complete opposite of him!

Tabitha turned to look at him and slightly smiled.

"Sure. What's up?" she asked. When he sighed and gently pulled her away from the control center, Tabitha had cause to worry; something was wrong. She waited for him to speak but instead he showed her a newspaper, The Daily Bugle to be exact. She was confused at first until she noticed the picture: it was of her and Peter handing over a group of lowlife thugs to the police. For a month, Tabitha also had been moonlighting alongside Peter and Tony in New York. She didn't do it often but she was starting to get a thrill from being back in action. Plus, it was an excuse to spend more time with the two, like her son had hinted at in her dream.

"Care to explain this?" John looked at her. She slightly sighed and shrugged.

"Nothing really to explain."

"Are you with another group, now?"

"What?! No; I just help P out from time to time! What the hell is wrong with that?"

"Plenty, especially since you're not hiding your face, anymore."

"You're making something out of nothing. Have I slacked off here in Metro Tower?"

"That's not the point. Just… be glad that Clark hasn't seen this…"

"What does Clark have to do with any of this?! God, you make it sound like I teamed up with Luthor or something like that! These are my friends we're talking about…"

"Who are superheroes in another faction. We don't go outside of the Justice League…"

"Last time I checked… I was able to help whoever the hell I please!" she retaliated. John simply looked at her.

"You want to do things your way? Fine. But just so you know: you make that decision and you step down as Monitor."

"You don't get to boss me around." she warned him.

"Let me remind you that I'm a founding member of this league. And… the last time **I **checked… you're not J'onn…" his green eyes glared at her. Tabitha's jaw twitched at the mention of his name and found herself glaring back at John. Her hands automatically made fists and she was seconds from attacking him, mere seconds away from charging up. John raised an eyebrow at her, "You're going to strike me, now?" it surprised him. Once again, many emotions flooded her all at once: it angered her that he was sitting there arguing with her over something so petty and the mere mention of J'onn's name saddened her but the fact that John even tried to compare her to him infuriated her. She knew she wasn't J'onn; she was nowhere even close so she didn't need anyone to tell her that, let alone even make her think about him when she was trying not to. One of the main reasons why she even volunteered her services to Tony and Peter was to keep herself from thinking about J'onn; she was a bit pleased that it was working.

However, she was glad that he made her think about J'onn: it brought back the memories of when they had first met… as well as the reason for the meeting. How long had it been since she had felt that sensation, the one that happened right before she raged and blacked out? Tabitha sadly realized that she was on the verge of losing control and was about to attack an actual Justice League member. She closed her eyes, stretched her fingers out and sighed.

"No. You're right; I'm not J'onn. I don't agree with your opinion so if I have to… I'll take this up with Clark." she finally calmed down. Instead of arguing with her, John surprised her by gently grabbing her shoulders.

"I know that you miss him; we all do. I didn't mean to insinuate that you were trying to copy him or even take his place. I know how close you two were. You were his prodigy… maybe a little more than that. Almost like his daughter…" his words surprised her. A… daughter?! Was that how John saw them? Tabitha realized that Jamila had been right; they were idiots! Her eyes had gotten moist at the whole realization of the other fact: they were close and deep down, despite the tough act she was trying to pull, she did miss him. Tabitha tore away from John and left the room as quickly as she could, before he could see that she was on the verge of crying. The more she tried to hold in her tears, the more they were trying to force themselves out. By the time she reached the door to the other room, she had bumped into Shayera and there was no hiding the tear that ran down her cheek. The only thing Tabitha could do was hold in her sobs and rush out of the room, leaving a confused John standing there. Shayera tried to stop Tabitha but put her focus on John.

"What happened? What did you do?!" she accused. He slowly shook his head.

"I… we were only talking…"

"What did you say to her?"

"I just mentioned how we all missed J'onn. And the fact that he was her mentor…" he tried to explain. Shayera looked back at the closed door and her heart reached out to Tabitha.

"Oh, no…" she sighed. She had known about their relationship for a while and had always wondered why no one else had caught on or even seen them sneak a kiss when they thought no one was looking. Shayera had been taken by surprise at J'onn's announcement of his leave of absence but was even more curious as to why Tabitha had been the only member not present at his farewell. She had seen how coldly they were treating each other beforehand but didn't put two and two together until the farewell on Watchtower; the two had broken up.

Shayera slightly shook her head and looked back at John; his words were probably the last straw and Tabitha had finally broken down.

"Did I say something wrong?"

"J'onn was more than just her mentor; the two were dating…" she said. John carefully took in what she said and smirked a little.

"This is no time for jokes!"

"I'm being serious! It never occurred to you the **real **reason why they were around each other so much? Why he wouldn't let her go on a lot of missions?" she asked. The longer he thought about it, the more it made sense. Any of the members were capable of handling Tabitha had her rage accidently came out; why did J'onn always limit her missions to the founding members and that was even **if **they requested her? In the beginning, it seemed reasonable; she was a new recruit, a new Metahuman for that matter. But as the time went by, the ordeal was quite puzzling to him. John had thought for the longest time that maybe J'onn actually didn't like Tabitha!

His eyes widened as he remembered the secret time-traveling mission that himself, Diana, Bruce and Tabitha had went on. Going into the future, he had seen his son… and Tabitha's. A spitting image of J'onn with the exception of brown eyes. While she was just as surprised as the others and tried to sell it, why didn't he think that there really **was** something between the two back then? He had refused to believe that fate could be changed; there was a reason that the two had seen their future sons. Bruce may have prevented Lord Chronos from taking over in the future but there was a lot of doubt in John's mind that Bruce's actions also prevented the birth of the two future Justice League members.

"How do you know about the two?"

"I've seen them. Just… kissing…" she saw that he gave her a certain look, "And, being a woman, I know what those looks meant whenever she was around him. She loved him… and this is killing her."

"I… didn't know. If I had known… I would have never mentioned…"

"It's okay. I'll go talk to her." Shayera decided and left.

Tabitha angrily wiped at her tears and tried to take deep breaths.

"Are you okay?" Clark actually scared her. She turned and looked at him.

"… I don't know. Clark… I need to resign as Monitor…"

"What? Why?"

"I… I don't feel confident enough to do my job." she didn't look at him. He gave her a curious look.

"Are you sure that's the truth?" he asked. He was there when J'onn made her temporary Monitor of Watchtower months prior; the founding members had decided to turn themselves in after the hack attack on the nuclear laser. He was also there when she gave her report to the president; she had done a fine job keeping Watchtower under control alongside Kara, his cousin.

"I've been helping Peter and Tony fight crime. I figured that I can't do that **and **be Monitor… right?" she decided to tell part of the truth. She left out the fact that John had been right: she wasn't J'onn and there was no way that she would ever replace him. Plus, being Monitor reminded herself too much of him; fighting crime took her mind off of it.

"I know. From what I read, you've been doing a great job at it. Tabitha, you don't have to resign unless you really want to. I don't have a problem with you fighting crime outside of the Justice League; as long as you're doing what's right. Bruce fights crime in Gotham City, away from the Justice League and I do it here; nothing wrong with that!" he smiled at her. She nodded a bit and finally looked at him.

"I just don't want to complicate things. If I'm out fighting crime… how am I to keep tabs on Metro Tower? J'onn…" she stopped herself for a moment. Maybe deep down, she thought she **was **replacing her ex-boyfriend. She decided to go ahead with the thought, "He was always connected to Watchtower. I'm no Martian; how can I do that?" she really wanted to know. She was taken by surprise when Clark put his hand on her shoulder.

"I am absolutely sure that J'onn trained you to the best of his ability… and you are doing an excellent job. For as long as you've been a member, you should've known by now that there aren't individuals here. We're a team… and we help each other out. Your job as Monitor is very important but if you're not available, trust me; someone will be there. Don't worry about always being connected to Metro Tower! And besides: if anything was to happen if you're away… well, that's what your communicator is for!" he tried. Tabitha had forgotten all about her communicator piece; it had been upgraded since she became Monitor. It now served more purposes than a regular communicator: not only was she able to speak with other league members, her family and doc virtually anywhere, she was also able to use it as a teleport device; with a press of a button, she was able to teleport to any destination of choice in a matter of a second. While J'onn was telepathically connected to Watchtower, her upgrade put her only a step behind that.

Tabitha slightly smiled at Clark as she thought about that, "After we defeated Luthor and Brainiac, do you remember the press conference we held?" he looked down at her. She gave him a puzzled look but nodded, "We were ready to pretty much call it quits, to disband the entire league. You and the other extended members disagreed with that notion. No one wanted to see us just… give up. Right now… the feeling is truly mutual." Clark explained. He gave her a quick squeeze before letting go of her shoulder, "Now… do you still want to resign?"

"I guess I didn't make all of those sacrifices just to quit now!" she realized. It put a smile on his face.

"I'm glad. I want to know one thing; are you sure you're okay with exposing yourself? I've seen the pictures: you're not wearing your mask. Sometimes a superhero's secret identity is sacred…" he tried. She looked at him and shook her head.

"I was cooped up in Watchtower for so long, no one on Earth knows who I am, besides family. I have no one to hide it from, anymore. Thanks, Clark!"

* * *

Tabitha felt a little better about her moonlighting after talking to Clark. However, it was the only thing that came simple to her. Killing Hydro-Man had made her afraid of her own powers. Even when she tried to tone them down, Tabitha still ended up hurting or even killing more people. She had to control herself before she became a threat to even innocent people.

Tabitha had made her concerns known to Ted and he started training with her on an almost daily basis. The former boxer even trained her in his old profession and was happy to see that she enjoyed learning as much as he loved to teach. Tabitha was inside Metro Tower's training facility, waiting on Ted. She had to admit that it was helping her; she was relying more and more on her natural strength rather than her Metahuman powers.

She was tying her shoe when she felt someone come in the room. When they didn't make a sound, she figured that it was Ted trying to do a sneak attack on her. She slightly smiled to herself; it was the perfect beginning to a training session. As soon as she felt a hand on her shoulder, Tabitha immediately caught him in the stomach with her elbow. She did a backwards sweep and smiled more as she heard him yell out in pain and land with a thud. She turned around to gloat but immediately covered her mouth.

"Oh, shit; Bruce!" was all she could say as she watched him grab his ankle in obvious pain. She ran over to him and knelt down, "Shit, shit, shit; I'm sorry! I thought you were Ted!"

"This is how you greet him?!" he was still in pain. He let go of his ankle and tried to wait out the throbbing, "I think you broke it…" he half hissed. She clasped her hands around her mouth and stared at his ankle, which was rapidly swelling up.

"Shut up; it ain't broke! I barely touched it…" she tried. Tabitha went to touch his ankle but retracted her hand when he bit his lip and took in a hissed breath, "Fuck, Bruce; I didn't mean to hurt you! What the hell were you doing trying to sneak up on me in the first place?!"

"Sure… get mad at **me **for something **you **did!" he grunted out. She sighed and helped him sit up, "And, I wasn't sneaking up on you…"

"Starting without me?" Ted's voice rang out. He smiled at first but then noticed that Bruce was in obvious pain. He quickly went over to the two, dropping his bag, "What happened?"

"She attacked me…"

"You attacked Bruce?" Ted stared wide-eyed at Tabitha. She returned the look and opened her mouth.

"Someone attacked Bruce?" Diana asked. Other Justice League members started to come inside the room and look at the sight. Diana went over to the three and helped Ted with Bruce. She looked at Tabitha, "Why would you attack Bruce?"

"Looks like she did a number on your ankle…" Ted noticed when Bruce did not put any weight on it.

"Tabitha broke Bruce's ankle?" someone from the small crowd asked. Tabitha threw her hands up in frustration.

"Oh, for fuck's sake; I didn't mean to! I thought he was Ted!" she followed the three. Ted looked back at her.

"So… you were gonna break **my **ankle?" he asked. Defeated, Tabitha threw her head down and let out a heavy sigh.

"Fuck…"

She had grown anxious and finally made her way to his room. She was saluted by one of the medics and they immediately got out of her way to let her in the room. Bruce looked up from his bed and wanted to actually laugh at Tabitha's worried look. She bit the side of her lip when she saw the cast over his right ankle.

"Thank you… for the flowers…" he looked at the colorful bouquet on the table. She slightly shrugged and sat down in the chair beside him.

"I, um… okay; it's my fault, alright?"

"You know that you used all of your force for that one move… right?" it had bothered him the past few days. She sighed and looked down at her feet.

"… I know… I didn't mean to…"

"I'm just glad that it was me instead of Ted; you would've broken his whole leg!"

"I'm… I'm sorry…" she tried to control her shakes. She was on the verge of crying and he took notice. Bruce got out of his bed and hobbled over to the other chair beside her. She was taken by surprise when he grabbed her and made her hug him.

He had been utterly confused for the past few months, starting with the sudden departure of J'onn. It saddened him at first; he knew that Tabitha would be leaving with him. However, he was surprised that she wasn't there for his farewell (and he would've thought that she would be right beside him during that) and then the confusion set in when he found out that she had no clue that he was leaving in the first place.

He knew she was hurting and wondered how long she would pretend that she wasn't bothered by J'onn's absence. He really wanted to know how… and why they had broken up. Regardless, he saw that something else was bothering her. Like the other members, he knew that she was moonlighting with Peter and Tony; he thought that it was an actual good thing for her.

"What's really wrong with you…" he quietly asked. She didn't want to but her body shook from keeping everything bottled up. Bruce sighed and held her tighter, finally provoking tears to gush out of her eyes. She hugged him back and sobbed a little.

What really **was **wrong with her? Sure, she admitted that she missed J'onn; she would've felt a little better had he stayed. As long as he was gone, she would always wonder if she was the actual reason he left. Who was she kidding, she was; it was her idea to take a break from each other: he probably took that as a way of saying that everything was truly over between the two! However, in the back of her mind, it scared her to think that because she missed him so much, her rehabilitated rage was slowly trying to come out.

Tabitha finally looked up at Bruce, not bothering to wipe her tears away. What was she supposed to tell him? The only person that knew about herself and J'onn was Shayera and Tabitha was pretty sure she didn't tell anyone else.

"I… I think my rage is trying to come back…" she decided to tell half the truth. Bruce sighed and smirked a little at her.

"Tabitha… are you sure that's the only thing bothering you?" he asked. She just gave him a curious look.

"I don't…" she tried. He looked deeply into her brown eyes.

"Stop keeping it bottled up; I knew about you two…" he confessed. He watched as her pupils widened for a second before she looked away.

"T-there's nothing bottled up anymore…"

"You know… that's probably a reason why your rage is trying to come back. Maybe if you admit…" he was stopped short when she suddenly jumped up and faced the door.

"Ain't nothing to admit: he left; end of story! What am I supposed to say; that I'm pissed off that he left without saying a word?! That he told everyone **but **me bye?! That fighting is the only thing that keeps my mind off of him and I can't even do **THAT **right no more?! That…" the tears wouldn't stop flowing from her eyes. She finally turned to Bruce, "That… no matter how shitty he made me feel… I still miss him…" her voice was shaky. She covered her mouth to keep the sobs from escaping. Bruce got up and put his hands on her shoulders, "I miss him so much! Why couldn't he had waited a day?!" she cried. Bruce could do nothing but hug her as she started to sob.

"I wish I had the answer to that. No one but J'onn knows that answer… well… maybe Diana…" it dawned on him. It was enough to make Tabitha stop sobbing and look up at him.

"… What…"she eyed him. Bruce was about to tell her more but stopped himself; Tabitha didn't know **anything**, he realized. It was too late; he had already mentioned a little of it. He sighed.

"It… was Diana's idea for him to take a vacation. Tabitha… she didn't know…" he tried to calm her down as she let go of him. She was in complete shock at first; why would Diana do something like that to her? Then, she realized the last of what Bruce had said: she didn't know. Diana had no clue about their relationship. Even still; what gave her the right to make such a suggestion? Because, regardless of the relationship Tabitha had with J'onn, Diana had known him much longer. She looked away from Bruce, shaking.

"W-what am I supposed to do, now…" she weakly asked. He was glad that her rage didn't get the best of her, making her storm out in order to track down Diana. It would be the last thing they would need; another inner conflict.

"You move on. You continue doing your job as Monitor. You continue to fight crime."

"You make it sound so easy..."

"I know it won't be. But I know one thing that will make it easier on you..." he suddenly realized. He knew that she was hurting; but it didn't stop his feelings for her.

"Yeah? What?"

"… Move back to Gotham…" he couldn't help but to smirk. Tabitha immediately looked at him.

"… What?"

"Well… seeing that you attacked me…."

"Dear God; you're on **that **again?" she couldn't help but to smile; she knew he was trying to make her feel better.

"Someone needs to take care of Gotham City while Batman is out of commission…" he continued as he laughed. Her eyes widened at him.

"**WHAT?!** By myself?!"

"Not necessarily; hmm, that's right… you've been in your own little world lately: I have a couple of sidekicks, now…"

"Wait…" she closed her eyes, remembering when she first met Batman, "I thought you said you didn't need sidekicks?"

"I found it funny that they shared one thing in common with you: they forced themselves on me…" he slightly smiled. She wiped her tears away and gave him a full laugh.

"Ha; so Bruce Wayne **is **a softie!"

"There was no doubt that he was; it just bothers Batman…"


	3. Kiss From a Rose

Chapter Three: Kiss from a Rose

Six weeks at the most, she thought as she watched Alfred help Bruce down in front of the Batcomputer. She had offered her help but was refused from both men. Tabitha sighed a little as she leaned on the control panel.

"I'll bring your lunch, Master Bruce…"

"Oh; I can help you…" Tabitha looked at him. He kindly shook his head.

"No need. I have a feeling that Master Bruce would enjoy your company more." he smiled and left. She could do nothing but stare at her feet, again.

"… When did you find out about… us?" she couldn't think of anything else to talk about. Dealing with the freak occurrences over the past few months, the two had stopped talking to each other as much as they used to.

It slightly pained him to remember the exact day for more than one reason: everyone was summoned for a big mission with the exception of Tabitha; J'onn had used one of his abilities to make her sleep through the alarm. Bruce still, to that day, felt that her now natural lightning ability would have saved the day; he was clueless as to why the Martian kept the young woman aboard Watchtower so much. After the success of the mission, he was the first to teleport back; he wanted to give J'onn a piece of his mind as well as tell Tabitha how he really felt. He was stopped short as he watched the two share their possible first kiss.

He gave her a slight smile, waiting for her to look at him.

"Do you remember the one mission that everyone went on?" he asked. She huffed at first, rolling her eyes. Of course she remembered it; "upset" was an understatement as far as how she felt when she realized what J'onn had done.

His smile turned into a laugh as he watched Tabitha quickly go from annoyed to embarrassment.

"Oh… you knew from the very beginning. You… saw…" she was glad that someone had entered the Batcave. She watched as the boy and the girl approached the two; they both looked no older than eighteen. Tabitha smiled at the fact that both had blue eyes, almost as if they were related. However, the boy had jet black short-cropped hair while the girl had fiery red, long hair. The two smiled at Tabitha as Bruce looked at them.

"Either you're giving free tours of the Batcave or they must be your two sidekicks!" she smirked at the two. The girl smiled wider at Tabitha as the boy stuck his hand out.

"You can call me Robin." the boy introduced. Tabitha shook his hand.

"Tabitha Lyght." the red-head introduced for Tabitha, "Supply clerk in the Army, Justice League member for the past three and a half years; current Monitor of Metro Tower." it looked as if she was excited to meet her. Tabitha gave her a surprised look. Bruce looked at her.

"Information specialist. Plus, one of the best hackers you'll ever run into!"

"Barbara Gordon." she finally introduced herself. Tabitha shook her hand as well.

The four talked mainly about the reason Tabitha was there. It was intriguing to her that Barbara not only knew a lot about her but she was an actual fan; she was excited to learn that they would be partnering up with a "real live super heroine". Tabitha however, was surprised to not only find out that the two were as skilled as Bruce but they both were barely seventeen.

A lot of things had changed since Tabitha lived in Gotham. There was a new police commissioner, for one: James Gordon… father of Barbara, who had stopped the Batman hunt immediately, and did all but embrace him with open arms as a key factor of the police force. He even had a "Bat Light" installed; a signal that shone bright in the sky, indicating that the city needed his help.

Tabitha also learned that Bruce had actually adopted Dick Grayson or Robin as he preferred to be called nowadays. While she had dealt with her own life, Bruce had taken the boy in when he lost his parents; the Graysons were an acrobatic act and the parents were killed when a mobster ordered the tampering of the safety net. Once she heard that story, Tabitha knew that the two were well matched for each other; Bruce not only took Robin in but started training him vigorously.

Barbara had always been fascinated with the world of super heroism; she was actually proud living in a city that had its own protector! But, she wasn't naïve; she knew that Batman couldn't do it all by himself. When she found out about Nikki Strykher, Barbara had to admit that she was a little jealous but even more fascinated; the white-haired woman had some sick moves and even sicker powers! Barbara used her communication and hacking skills to find out everything she could about Ms. Strykher… and was surprised at her findings! To say that she was thrilled to be working with Tabitha was quite an understatement!

Tabitha was glad that Batman explained to the commissioner about his absence… slightly; the only explanation given was that Robin, Batgirl and Nikki would be taking over for a few weeks! The last thing she needed was to be accused of being a rogue vigilante.

Bruce looked at the three as they gathered in the Batcave. There were two things that he hated to admit: one was that he was actually flattered that Barbara designed her outfit after his: an all-black latex suit with yellow jagged gloves and yellow high heel boots. The bat symbol in between her breasts was yellow and her utility belt was quite smaller. Barbara's cape was two toned; black on the outside and yellow on the inside, and flowed just as long as Bruce's. Her mask was exactly like his: covering everything except her mouth and jaw; however, she left room in the back to let her hair flow out.

The other thing was that Tabitha looked great in her simple black latex/nylon suit as well. There wasn't much detail to her outfit; it simply made people pay attention to the small curves of her body. The all black also made her snow-white hair stand out even more; the effect of it all looked as though to mesmerize anyone who came across her.

Tabitha slightly cocked her head to the side to look at Robin. The boy was more toned than she realized, wearing a red vest with green sleeves that stopped a couple of inches above his elbows. A yellow "R" was seen across his left breast and his green gloves had a medium length to them. It was his green tights (and she really hated calling them "tights" but they weren't what she would've considered pants, either) that showed off the true tone in his legs. Acrobat, Tabitha silently reminded herself. His black utility belt had a gold buckle and Robin's cape was the same as Barbara's but fell around his knees. He had on a simple black mask around his eyes and it amazed Tabitha at how different he looked.

Her attention went to Barbara as she approached her. She simply gazed at Tabitha's hair.

"Yeah… it still shocks me, too…" Tabitha smiled as she grabbed a strand. Without warning, Barbara grabbed a strand and caressed it.

"It's soft…" she was slightly amused. Tabitha laughed.

"What; black people can't have soft hair or something?!" she continued to laugh. Barbara blushed slightly as Bruce widened his eyes.

"Wait… you're black?!" he said to her, making Tabitha throw her head back in laughter.

"Smart… **ass**!" she laughed. Bruce laughed as he approached her.

"All joking aside… I want to give you something." he gave her what looked like a black mask. She looked at him.

"A new mask?"

"I know that you feel that you have nothing to hide anymore. Unfortunately, that can't be said for here. Things have changed since you've been gone."

"Which is a good thing… right?" she tried. Bruce gave her a smirk and shook his head slowly.

"I just want you to be safe…" he decided to at least admit that. Tabitha looked at the black mask and nodded. Barbara saw that she had a confused look on her face and smiled a little.

"Let me help you." she immediately volunteered. She slowly smoothed the jagged mask onto Tabitha's face, stood back and admired how it put more emphasis on her hair. Looking at the mask, it seemed to be a modified outline of Bruce's bat symbol. Tabitha put her hands on her hips and winked at Barbara.

"Not bad, eh?"

"Just missing a cape…" Bruce mentioned. Tabitha swung around and shook her head.

"Nuh uh; I don't do capes! Bad enough you got me in one of your masks!"

"Alright; get going you three!" he told them. Tabitha and Robin headed out as Bruce quickly grabbed Barbara's arm, "Just to warn you… she doesn't swing that way…" he half whispered. She lightly blushed as she went to join the others.

* * *

She took in the night air and was almost surprised at the difference from deep in the city to the almost isolated manor. She had cried, twice. It still didn't make her feel any better. She missed him... terribly. It didn't matter how much time had passed since he left, she still missed him. She was also still frustrated that he left without telling her; she was upset about him leaving, period! If anything, she yearned for some sort of explanation. Maybe that would make her feel better. Even if he didn't **want** to get back together, it would be something that weighed less on her mind if she at least knew why he left.

J'onn simply watched her and read her thoughts. Why didn't he just show himself, let her know that he did love her and was hurting just as much as she was? He knew how she felt about everything; she wanted him back. Or, did she? The only thing he knew for certain was that she missed him. That she was upset that he left the way that he did. However... there were no clear thoughts saying that she wanted him back. He still had to prove that Tabitha could trust him, again.

When he made the decision to leave, J'onn at first wanted to explore and live in Asia. The culture there was something that relaxed him and it would definitely try to keep his mind off of his heartache. But that was no good. As he looked at the various, beautiful lands, the one thought he always had: Tabitha would love this. When he saw that no matter where he went, he would still think about her, J'onn made the decision (and he had a feeling in the back of his mind that it may have been a poor one) to sort of watch over his ex-girlfriend.

Another thing that was bothering him: he was jealous. He knew that the main reason Tabitha was staying with Bruce was to help the Dark Knight persona out. However, J'onn wasn't dumb; even without using his mind reading ability he knew that Bruce was attracted to her. What made him narrow his eyes at the man as he approached the balcony was the idea that Bruce would be so bold to move in so quickly on Tabitha. That thought also made him realize that she technically wasn't "his" any longer: she was free to move on. J'onn left the two to be alone, venturing back to where he had made his home.

Bruce was careful not to startle the white-haired woman; the last thing he needed was to either be shocked or suffer through another broken bone! When he felt he was close enough, he decided to make his presence known.

"Tabitha?" he was glad that she only turned his way. She gave him a weak smile before turning back to look at the stars.

"You should be resting..."

"I'll be fine. I just wanted to check on you."

"I'm good. You know... Barbara and Robin aren't bad at all. They **could **take care of things by themselves..."

"But... I trust you more." he smiled as he stood beside her, "Besides; you strike just as much fear as Batman does! Plus... I needed someone to protect them."

"You sure I'm the right one for the job?" she smirked. He laughed a little and looked at her.

"Still trying to talk out of this whole ordeal... am I that bad of a person?" he tried to hide his laughter. Tabitha swung her head towards him with a shocked look on her face.

"What?! No!" she felt her cheeks ache when he laughed, "I just... don't feel comfortable invading your home like this..."

"Tabitha... I asked you to come here. It's not like you invited yourself." he said. Tabitha stopped looking at Bruce and nodded. He continued to look at her, wondering if he should tell her about his feelings for her. It would be sudden, he knew but Bruce felt that he had stood in the background long enough. She at least had a right to know, he tried to convince himself, "Tabitha? There's… another reason why I asked you to come back…" he tried. She slowly looked at him.

"… What; you missed me or something?" the idea made her smile widely. It had been a long time ago but she remembered when she had faint feelings for the man. She admitted that he had very attractive qualities, both Bruce Wayne and Batman. However, when he confirmed that he only looked at her as a friend and a colleague, she turned those feelings elsewhere.

"Well, of course. But… more than you realized."

"Wait… what?" she looked at him. She couldn't believe what came out of his mouth; he had missed her… more than she knew. Tabitha's eyes widened as he gently took her into his arms. She found herself oddly melting as he brushed her hair back; Tabitha realized that it had been months since anyone embraced her the way that Bruce was doing. A part of her welcomed the embrace; it was something that she may have needed all along. Her heartbeat quickened as he leaned in closer to her, finally putting his lips on hers. She couldn't explain it; she felt as if… this was wrong. She shouldn't be kissing anyone else so soon after her breakup. So soon, she questioned herself; how long had it been since she told J'onn that they should take a break from their relationship? How long ago was it that he decided to leave, basically dropping off from the face of the earth? It wasn't like they were married and he had suddenly died, Tabitha tried to reason with herself.

Tabitha was also trying to figure out another thing: of all people, why was Bruce Wayne kissing her? Wasn't this the same man who, a few years back, was very strict on his "no dating colleagues" policy? She wondered what had made him change his mind. Maybe Bruce and Batman were indeed two totally different people; while Bruce may have constantly thought about pursuing her or even Diana, Batman didn't want anything to do with it.

He finally let go of the kiss and looked into her confused and shocked brown eyes. He really didn't know what to say to her. All he knew was that he was glad that he had finally kissed her.

"I know that you're… you're still trying to get over J'onn. But…" he ran into a brick wall. What was Bruce trying to tell her? He had been in love with her for quite some time but he suddenly felt bad about kissing her. Maybe he was TOO quick to try to make her forget about her broken heart, "… maybe I shouldn't have kissed you…" he realized. Bruce let go of the embrace and turned to leave but Tabitha immediately grabbed his hand. She still had a shocked look on her face but it quickly turned into a look of appreciation.

"No… it was what I needed." she said and returned the kiss. Tabitha tried not to think what this would lead up to; the only thing she wanted to do was relish in the kiss and melt in his arms.


	4. A Rival Appears

Chapter Four: A Rival Appears

"… you want me to do WHAT?!"

Bruce sighed and laughed as Tabitha looked at him wide-eyed. He grabbed her hands and kissed them, only for her to quickly snatch them away and glare at him.

"You've come a long way from the rage-infested, cocky brat that waltzed into my building and fixed my security system…"

"… You thought I was cocky…?" she looked at him with all seriousness. Bruce laughed more and grabbed her hands yet again.

"Stop interrupting me! I believe that… you need to put that part of your life behind you." he tried to explain. She just looked into his eyes for a moment and looked away.

"… I don't think that I can. Bruce… he's the reason I'm the way that I am now."

"Some people like the way that you are…" he waited until she looked at him, "You've accepted the fact that you'll never be normal. The next step should be to let him know that." he finished explaining. She sighed a bit.

"What if I lose it?"

"I have all the confidence that you won't."

Tabitha looked up at the building and let out a shaky sigh. The last time she was there, she had almost lost it. Two years after becoming a Metahuman, she had finally come face-to-face with the man who was responsible for the change: Gary First. Even with the fellow Justice League members surrounding her, even with the near completion of her rehabilitation, she had lost it; she had come so close to giving the man what she felt he deserved: a quick and painful death.

As she went inside and signed the visitor's log, she realized that her new boyfriend was right; there were so many things that she had left in the past: the man formerly known as Alpha should be added to that list. She didn't know what to expect or what to even talk about. Tabitha was actually afraid of admitting to him that she was willing to let go of the past and try to forget about what he had done to her.

She waited in the same room as she did a few years ago and thought more. How could she simply forget about what he had done to her? He had left her for dead, turned her best friend against her, lied to her family and even tried to kill her; things like that were not easy to forget! She sadly thought that maybe she had agreed on seeing Gary and letting bygones be bygones only to satisfy Bruce.

There was something different about him, she noticed as he entered the room. For one, there was only one guard with him. Gary gave Tabitha a genuine smile as the guard closed the door. The man that stood before her was actually clean-shaven, with a fresh haircut. His once salt and pepper hair was fully grey but his facial features looked more defined. His hazel eyes shone as he sat down across from her; seeing that he wasn't being restrained, Tabitha readied herself for any unpredictability.

"I'm surprised to see you…" his voice was sincere. Tabitha switched glances from the lone guard outside the door back to Gary.

"Why aren't you handcuffed to that chair?"

"Oh… a lot has changed about me since the last time we spoke. I've had time to think about my mental state. Plus… I stopped fighting the staff about taking my medication." he confessed. Tabitha slowly calmed down and tried to relax in her chair.

"So… the meds are working…?"

"I have a much clearer mind than four years ago, if that's what you're asking. Which… I want to apologize for, by the way…" his apology actually threw her off guard. For years, Tabitha wanted to hear an apology. She knew that it really wouldn't change the fact that she was a Metahuman… but at least she would have known that he was willing to apologize for putting her through hell. Tabitha sat there and stared at him.

"… Why…?"

"… I… don't understand…"

"I didn't come here for an apology; I wanted **that** four years ago!"

"Oh. Well… now that my mind is clear… I realized that you deserved one. So… if you didn't come here for an apology… what did you come here for?" she was afraid that he would ask. Tabitha shifted in her seat and stopped looking at him.

"Closure… I guess. I don't know." she sighed and finally looked at him, "I'm never gonna be normal again. I guess… I want to know… why me?"

"Oh, Tabitha… it wasn't personal. I was picking really small units; ones that I felt wouldn't set off alarms if something was to go wrong. I… never planned on the machine malfunctioning… ever. And as far as me picking you… it was purely coincidental that you were that guy's sergeant."

"So… you had no intentions of killing me…?"

"I panicked when the machine malfunctioned on you. Had I been in my right mind… I would've revived you. But at the time… the only thing I was thinking about was the project." he explained. She slightly nodded.

"I… found out that you weren't a real general." she saw that his eyes widened slightly, "How did you fool the military like that?" it was something that she had wondered for quite some time. With so much paperwork to go through, not to mention boot camp and training overall, she figured that it was absolutely impossible to trick any branch of service into believing you were a service member, let alone a high ranking general in charge of their own department!

"How did you find out?"

"Let's just say a little birdie told me… a one-eyed birdie…" it made her slightly twitch thinking about the S.H.I.E.L.D. organization; she owed someone, anyone from there a quick jolt…

"I see. Well, when I came up with the plan to steal the formula, I knew that I wanted to dispense it out to the military. In order to do that, I needed to look and act the part. There was an employee who worked there; a simple engineer. I knew that he was former military and… I befriended him. He taught me everything that I needed to know. The icing on the cake? His wife…"

"His wife? What; the three of you were in some sort of weird… sick orgy or something?" she asked, making a face. Gary laughed a little.

"No! She makes fake IDs. I offered the two an amount they couldn't refuse as well as a guaranteed job placement elsewhere for him." Tabitha didn't hear the rest of his words. She had stiffened up; it couldn't be…

"The husband and wife… you know where they're at?"

"I remember when I gave them the money, he had said that it came at the right time; she got a job offer to teach back in her hometown. I, um… it's the reason why I had your body dumped there; not to send the two a message but… it was just a sick reminder that it was because of them that I was able to do what I did." he explained. She had a sudden sickness that started in her stomach and tried to make its way to her throat; she swallowed hard to ease it back down, "I don't know if she still makes fake IDs… with the quality of them, I doubt that she stopped. I gave her at least a grand for one ID, alone." he finished. Tabitha's sight blurred slightly; she was trying really hard to hold down the contents in her stomach. Another hard swallow and she forced herself to focus on him.

"Did they… know about your plans…"

"Oh, no. The first rule of thumb when it comes to planning things like that: tell no one else. The only thing they knew was that I needed fake IDs. She was worried a bit when I told her that they needed to be military but I assured her that I was no terrorist. Are you… okay?" Gary noticed that Tabitha had become pale. She took a deep breath but the sickness stayed.

"… Yeah. I… just wanted more answers. I'm over it, now." she needed to leave. Tabitha got up from the chair and grabbed the guard's attention. Gary didn't flinch as she walked past him but looked up at her slowly.

"… I was afraid." he simply said. She turned and looked at him.

"What?"

"The last time you were here… I was afraid. I knew that you were going to kill me on the spot. I… deserved it; I knew that. If I don't ever see you again after this… I just wanted you to know that." he explained. She could only nod and rush out of the room; she couldn't hold down her sickness much longer. As she ran into the restroom, Tabitha knew that she wouldn't be able to hold in the sickness that was pushing its way past her throat any longer; she only made it as far as to one of the sinks when she violently heaved out the contents in her stomach. She was glad no one was in the restroom; waves of electrical currents flowed all over her body, making her break out into a cold sweat. She weakly tried to rinse the sink out, a feeling of embarrassment overtaking her as she slumped down to the floor. After what seemed like forever, Tabitha finally calmed down and gained enough strength to finish cleaning up. It wasn't true, it couldn't be; why would doc do something like that to her? She wanted to hear it from her best friend in person.

Having a super heroine best friend, Jamila had gotten used to her doorbell ringing at any given time of the day. So, it wasn't a surprise that she had barely heard it as she was getting ready to lay down beside her husband in bed. He groaned slightly as she threw a pillow at him.

"She's my best friend!"

"Does that mean she doesn't have to know how to tell time?"

"The Justice League don't go by nine to five hours!" she gave him a playful glare as she left to answer the door. As the professor opened the door, she was caught by surprise as she was slammed into the wall. She looked into her best friend's eyes with fear, "T-Tabs!"

"Tell me he's wrong, Jamila; tell me!" she almost growled. Tabitha had lifted the professor off her feet, pinning her to the wall as hard as she could. Jamila winced in pain and confusion as she felt Tabitha's fingers digging into her arms.

"W-what… I don't know… Tabitha…" Jamila didn't know what Tabitha was talking about. Her confusion only made it worse as Tabitha threw her best friend down to the ground. Jamila tried to scramble to her feet but fear was stopping her legs from working; she could only crawl away as Tabitha slowly stalked her.

"You made a fake ID for that son-of-a-bitch!"

"I-I-I-I make a lot of fake IDs… who are you talking abo…" her best friend's words made the sickness come back to her. Tabitha swallowed hard and wrapped her hand around Jamila's throat, making her gasp in more fear. She was about to lose it, she felt it as she started to experience tunnel-vision, the first sign that she was about to black out and rage.

Jamila's eyes widened when Tabitha wrapped her hand around her throat, immediately cutting off her air. She watched in fear as the usual glimmer from her light brown eyes started to quickly fade; she was about to rage.

"_For the love of God, J'onn… I don't know where you are… but Tabs is losing it!" _Jamila had hoped her frantic plea would reach him. At that point and time, she didn't care who had broken whose heart; she needed someone to snap Tabitha out of it!

When the sickness started to climb up into her throat again, Tabitha regained her full vision and focus. Her best friend was wheezing, clawing at the hand she had firmly wrapped around her throat. Tears welled in her eyes and she immediately let go. As her best friend rolled to her side and started coughing, Tabitha ran into the kitchen and retched into the sink. As she ran the water to clean out the sink, she saw Jamila standing at a distance, obviously shaking from her ordeal. Tears finally made their way out of Tabitha's eyes as her own shaking finally ceased.

"… You… you still make fake IDs…?" she cried. Jamila looked down at the kitchen floor.

"… I couldn't tell you. Especially seeing who you work for now. It… it makes me a hell of a lot more money than being a professor does… I'm sorry…" her voice was almost a raspy whisper. Jamila was still confused; why would that make her best friend attack her?

She finally came closer to her as Tabitha broke down and collapsed on the floor. She looked up at her through tear-soaked eyes.

"Don't! Don't come near me! It's because of **you **that I'm what I am now!" she cried more. By that time, Jamila glanced over and saw that Albert was at the bottom of the stairs, looking as confused as she was. She motioned for her husband to stay put.

"Tabs… I seriously don't know what you're talking about…" as the words escaped her mouth, she finally realized what her best friend was getting at. Jamila started back to shaking as she slightly covered her mouth, "… no. Oh, God no!"

"How could you?!" she sobbed; it really depressed her to even think that her best friend had a hand in the reason why she became a Metahuman. Tears ran down Jamila's cheeks.

"I swear, I didn't know! I'm so sorry, Tabitha!" the professor's husband had barely made it to his wife in time to catch her. He looked at the two sobbing women.

"What… the hell is going on?!" he asked. Jamila tried to wipe at her eyes and looked at him.

"That guy… before we moved here… the one who wanted the military IDs…"

"The scientist? What about… him…" Albert thought for a moment and then widened his eyes. He put his head in his hands, "Oh, fuck… Tabitha…" was all he could say. Despite the warning, Jamila went over to her best friend and held her. She was glad that Tabitha didn't push her away and simply clung onto her. The two hugged each other until they both stopped crying.

"Tabs… you're my best friend; I would never do anything to hurt you…" Jamila tried. Tabitha responded with a sniffle and a slight nod.

"Why? Why did you do it?"

"… I've never asked a client why they needed a fake ID. I never **wanted **to know why he wanted a military ID! It was my job to make whatever the client wanted…"

"… She'd been making IDs before I met her. Had it just been me and her, I would've made her quit. But… we had three extra mouths to feed, on top of paying back student loans and other bills…" Albert tried to explain to Tabitha. She kept her eyes on Jamila.

"You really didn't know… what he was planning?"

"No. Tabs, my husband was military; had I known from the start, I would've immediately told him no!" she said. Tabitha sighed a little and started to get up. She looked at her best friend and slightly cringed at the marks around her neck. What had gotten into her; as upset as she was at the news, she knew that normally, she would never put her hands on her best friend. She wiped at the fresh tears forming into her eyes.

"I'm sorry… for attacking you. I… fuck! When he told me… I… it made me so sick…"

"And, you stopped thinking. I deserved it… making IDs for people like that…" Jamila turned away from her. Tabitha made her look into her eyes.

"No. You ain't a bad person, doc… bad people don't take in total strangers into their home. I just… lost it… again…" it almost made her angry that had it not been for her getting sick to her stomach, she would've killed her best friend, "Doc… you can't make any more fake IDs…" she looked dead into her best friend's eyes. Jamila slightly looked away.

"Tabitha…"

"If you need the money that fucking bad… I'll ask Bruce…" she made up her mind. Jamila shot her a look.

"I… I can't let you do that…"

"Whatever it takes to make you stop. Cuz… I don't wanna be the one to bring you in. I can't…" the thought made her tear up. She sucked in a breath to keep the tears away, "And, if I can't do my job… I'm no good to the league." she said. Jamila thought about her words and her hands absentmindedly reached up and touched the bruises on her neck. She grimaced as she touched the sore and tender spots; a painful reminder of how truly powerful… and dangerous her best friend really was. She wasn't about to cross her anymore.

Tabitha saw that Jamila finally noticed the bruises she had left around her neck and a tear fell. Before Jamila could respond, Tabitha immediately hugged her. She hugged her back and nodded.

"… Okay. I won't make the IDs anymore…"

J'onn gave out a silent sigh of relief; he was worried that she would actually go through with blacking out: he was ready to risk showing himself to stop her from killing her friend. He wondered what was actually wrong with her; had his sudden departure put **that **much of an impact on her mentality? Just like her, he was glad that she had gotten sick and snapped out of it in time. He lingered for a while as the two women hugged and reluctantly went on his way.

* * *

Months passed steadily as Tabitha tried to balance her erratic emotions, fighting alongside her good friend and getting more and more into Bruce Wayne. Not that she had gotten over J'onn completely; she still thought about him. However, as Bruce started to give her his all, thoughts of the Martian began to be few and far apart. She couldn't help but to think about him whenever she took her duties as Monitor; it was the reason why she was in that position in the first place. However, after having a talk with Shayera, she learned to not dwell on the bad things but the good things.

For Bruce, life was actually… better. There had been quite a few women who made lasting impressions on him in his life; but even with them, he was always hesitant of revealing who he really was. That was the one thing that absolutely irked him about falling in love: would telling that woman that he was Batman change their relationship? Nine times out of ten, it always did. While the majority of the time, the finger could be pointed to him, when the love of his life knew that he was Batman, things definitely changed.

This was different; the "she" in his life now was a super heroine; she had to keep her own identity a secret as well. And… they were fighting crime together. A part of him still worried about her safety, as well as how she was starting to get closer and closer to going back to her former self and raging. The one thing that kept his heart at ease was that he was with her, along with Barbara and Dick; the three were very capable of calming her down or even taking her out if need be. Bruce never wanted to think about the latter but he knew that if it ever came down to that, Tabitha would want someone really close to her to "do the honors".

She had grown up so much since the first time they had become partners, Bruce realized. She was fully aware now that she used to rage and knew the beginning signs of it; there was no real need for anyone to baby her. She had stopped using her Metahuman abilities as much, so she was almost like Bruce and the others as far as abilities went. Once his ankle was better, Bruce took over with training her. She was a quick learner and surprisingly disciplined. He enjoyed spending every moment with her.

This was why he was really nervous about what he wanted to do. Bruce Wayne loved Tabitha Lyght; he had deep feelings for her for quite some time. He couldn't hide from his true feelings for her any longer: Bruce Wayne had to make sure that this was the one that didn't get away.

Everyone in Gotham City was astounded with the news of their prodigal son dating his head electrician; it was unthinkable that he would be involved with someone so… common. She tried not to let the stares and disapproving looks get to her; Tabitha knew that she was not the type of woman that people were used to seeing Bruce with. However, she would wish constantly that everyone knew the real Bruce; the real Bruce looked at and analyzed people from the inside out. It didn't matter that Tabitha wasn't sophisticated or wealthy enough; he loved her for who she was, period.

It was no wonder that Tabitha felt uncomfortable being seen alongside Bruce at his numerous galas and/or fundraisers. She wasn't what people would call a "girlie girl"; she didn't care much for wearing glamorous gowns and flawless makeup. But, wherever Bruce was, there she was beside him, putting on her best smile and looking her best in a designer dress… and wig. She absolutely hated wigs; it was the reason why she didn't resort to one when she found out that she could not dye her now natural snow-white hair. But it was the least she could do to make sure that she didn't embarrass her boyfriend in public by wearing her signature t-shirt head wrap. At least he had made sure that the wigs were close to Tabitha's original medium brown hair color.

It seemed like another regular fundraiser to her. So, she wondered why Bruce insisted that her family as well as Dr. Lindsey and her husband attended. Tabitha also saw that a few Justice League members were present as well, which was even weirder: they were hardly ever invited to one of his shindigs unless they were there for undercover security purposes. Nevertheless, Tabitha and Jamila stood around one of the various rounded food tables that had been scattered around in the main dining room of the manor. She looked down at her glass of champagne in disgust.

"What's wrong, hon?" Jamila asked. Tabitha shook her head and gave the glass to one of the servers.

"I'm sorry… it tastes funny to me…" she said.

"Would you like something else, Miss Lyght?"

"I guess… some water… can't go wrong with that…" she told the server. They nodded and left. Jamila sniffed her glass and shrugged.

"Smells okay to me… maybe a bad batch of champagne?"

"I hope not. That means Bruce is gonna have to grab everyone's champagne, go through the batches…"

"I see. Easier to just deal with the sick; I got it…" Jamila said and took a sip of her champagne. Tabitha looked at her for a second and burst into laughter. The professor tried not to crack a smile but failed and laughed along with her, "Ooh! Tabs… who is that with Bruce…?" Jamila's attention went to across the room. Tabitha followed her gaze and they landed on Bruce talking to a woman. She was beautiful, with jet black long hair that flowed past her shoulders. She laughed at whatever Bruce had said and her green eyes glowed with excitement. She was about to shrug things off until she saw how the woman… touched Bruce. It was like one of her touches; the ones that she did when she wanted to be affectionate with him. That was **her** touch… and no other woman should be touching Bruce Wayne in that manner!

It didn't matter that Bruce had calmly removed the woman's hand and gave her a strange look; the only thing Tabitha saw was that someone was **touching **him! Whenever he was being interviewed by a female reporter, especially an entertainment reporter, they would touch him as much as they could; that was fine: it was their job to try to get all cozy and mingle. This woman… she had never seen before. She knew that the green-eyed vixen wasn't a reporter or even a friend; since they started dating, she was introduced to all of his associates.

"Excuse me for a minute…"

"Oh… shit's 'bout to get real…" Jamila gulped down the rest of her champagne and followed her best friend over to the two. She was glad she had come to her senses and realized what her best friend was capable of; she immediately grabbed Tabitha by the arm, "Tabs… remember where we're at…" she silently warned. Tabitha narrowed her eyes towards the two but nodded. She put on her best smile as she came to Bruce's side, wrapping her arm around his.

He had seen her making an angry beeline towards the two and was relieved in many ways than one. He gave his girlfriend a genuine smile and gave out a mental thank you for the "rescue". The woman in front of him didn't hide her disappointment of Tabitha's arrival, even scowling at her.

"Have you met my girlfriend?"

"No. I didn't even know you were taken…" the woman almost narrowed her eyes at Tabitha. Tabitha, however, kept her smile as she switched glances from Bruce to her.

"This is Tabitha. Tabitha, this is Selina Kyle. She's a sponsor for the fundraiser tonight." Bruce introduced. Tabitha thought about being petty and not offering her hand but she knew that she had to be the better woman; she gave Selina a wider smile and enthusiastically threw her hand out.

"It's very nice to meet you, Ms. Kyle." she kept the smile on her face. Selina reluctantly shook Tabitha's hand, making sure that she gave her a firm grip. Tabitha couldn't help but to notice the tension in the handshake, as if Selina was trying to prove her strength. She knew that she couldn't go into a sparring match of strength with her; with the mutant DNA in her, Tabitha would more than likely break the woman's hand!

"Likewise… I'm sure. It's funny that Bruce never mentioned you…"

"… oh? Hmm… I'm surprised that he would even have to mention anything; the media makes sure that they broadcast it as much as possible!" Jamila stifled a snicker hearing Tabitha lay on her accent very thickly. Being a Tennessee native, she knew all too well that their accent could become very annoying to those not used to it; drawing it out could be absolute torture!

Selina slightly flinched at the thick accent but forced a smile.

"I figured you're not from here. Well… have a good night…" she said and reluctantly left, not before giving Bruce a certain look. Tabitha kept her smile.

"You, too! Hope to see you at the next fundraiser!" she stopped herself from waving. She waited until Selena was out of sight before turning her attention towards Bruce, "So… who is Selina Kyle…"

"She's a fundraiser spons…"

"No… who is she… really?" she asked. Jamila started to leave the two.

"Think I'll get me another glass of champagne…" she said. Bruce sighed slightly.

"We… used to see each other…"

"And you didn't tell her about me because…"

"It's… not what you think; trust me. Can we talk about it in private, later… please?" he asked. Tabitha gave him a look but nodded.

"Fine…"

The fundraiser was coming to an end as Bruce and Tabitha grabbed everyone's attention at the front of the room. Throughout the entire bash, J'onn kept a careful eye on Tabitha. Shape-shifted into a random human form, he watched her as she mingled, laughed, ate; he was even proud that she kept her composure dealing with the woman who was obviously flirting with Bruce, cracking a smile when she tried to be as obnoxious as possible.

He missed her, to the point where he was closer and closer to approaching her and begging for a second chance; regardless of who she was with. He was debating on when he was going to reveal himself to her; as the party was trying to come to an end, J'onn knew that his window was closing fast. He was so caught up into coming up with some sort of plan that he didn't notice that someone approached him. Jamila smiled at him, handing him a glass of champagne.

"Hi! Looks like you need to loosen up a bit…" she tried. She had noticed the guy had been staring her best friend down the entire night… and didn't like it. The stranger was indeed handsome; his dark exotic eyes simply stared at her as he grabbed the glass. She just couldn't shake the vibe that lingered around him; something wasn't right about the man.

"Thank you, Miss…"

"Dr. Lindsey."

"A medical doctor?" he asked. Jamila laughed a little, slowly sipping the remainder of her champagne.

"No; I wish! A doctor of science. Are you enjoying yourself, Mr.…"

"You can call me John, Dr. Lindsey…"

"Oh… that's it? Just… John?" she asked, a bit annoyed that he continued to glance towards Tabitha's way. Well, she **is** beautiful, she tried to reason. Maybe John was just admiring her from afar.

Jamila was about to leave the stranger alone until a weird feeling swept her. She slowly studied John as he continued to watch her friend, "John… you look so familiar to me. What's your last name?"

"Jones. Quite a common last name; you may have heard of quite a few John Joneses…"

"Hmm… true. My maiden name is Jones so…" she nodded in agreement. Something had hit her as soon as she finished her sentence. She quickly turned and studied the man with more emphasis; she knew him. The vibe that lingered around him wasn't a bad vibe at all; the professor knew that she knew this John Jones…

Jamila's eyes widened when she put two and two together. She leaned in closer to him. J'onn looked down at her.

"Is everything okay, Dr. Lindsey?"

"….. J'onn…?!" she whispered. He was glad that he had control of his composure; he was absolutely shocked that Dr. Lindsey caught on as quickly as she did. He didn't think that it would hurt to use his human alias around her, especially seeing that he was disguising his voice and looks. J'onn had to think of something; he knew that if he let her believe that it was him, she would immediately tell Tabitha or worse… start asking him questions that he didn't want to answer.

He gave her a slightly confused look and erased the fact that she figured him out from her mind. When she gave him a blank stare, he knew that it worked.

"Dr. Lindsey… are you okay?" he asked. She blinked a couple of times and looked at him fully.

"… Yeah. I'm sorry. Guess I spaced out for a sec!"

"Too much champagne?" he asked with a hint of a smile. Jamila gave him a look and finally smiled.

"I can hold my liquor, thank you!" she said. Jamila was about to continue speaking with the man until Bruce asked for everyone's attention. His speech went on about thanking everyone who contributed to the fundraiser, mentioning an upcoming event that he hoped to see the same faces at. There were a couple of jokes that were laughed at and then he was towards the end of his speech. Tabitha looked slightly uncomfortable but stayed beside him and kept her smile. She was relieved when he ended the speech and was just about to leave his side until he quickly grabbed her hand.

"One more thing before everyone leaves…" he said. It seemed to happen in slow motion for Tabitha; he looked and smiled at her. She gave him a confused look but her eyes immediately widened when he got down on one knee. She barely heard the gasps and sounds of surprise through her own heart pounding through her ears. Her knees buckled slightly when she watched him pull the ring out of his pocket; it was the biggest diamond she had ever seen in her life. It wasn't the ring that made her want to faint; it was the confirmation of what he was about to do, "No big speeches; just straight and to the point: will you marry me, Tabitha?" he asked. She was speechless. Tabitha never knew that Bruce felt that way about her. Sure, he had told her that he had been in love with her for the longest; technically, this proposal wasn't as sudden as it looked. She did love him but what he was doing at that moment made her question just how much. She never thought about marriage… to anyone for that matter, but she wasn't going to shoot the idea down. This was a huge step for her to make and part of her hated that he did this in public; what if she didn't want to get married at all?

A smile crept up on her face and a tear made its way down her cheek. She couldn't speak; the only thing she could do was nod. What was she afraid of? The two spent almost every waking moment with each other; it was almost like they were already married. There would be no rush for the two to exchange vows; she knew that there wouldn't be an actual wedding for at least a year.

The crowd responded as Bruce slipped the engagement ring on her finger; a platinum ten carat diamond ring. He gave her a tender kiss and hug. She had no time to look at the expressions of everyone in the room, particularly Selina's as she huffed and immediately left the room. Her best friend had her mouth covered throughout the entire ordeal, fighting back tears.

"Oh… wow! Can you believe that?! They're…" she turned to the stranger and saw that he was gone. Everything that J'onn was planning had suddenly gone out the window; he had never imagined that Bruce would propose marriage to the one that he still loved. He couldn't do it; he couldn't stand there and watch any more of it and simply left.

After everything and everyone settled down, Bruce and Tabitha received congratulations from everyone. She was a bit nervous when the Justice League members approached them; she couldn't speak for Bruce but she was trying to keep their relationship hushed. She was relieved that they were happy with the announcement and wished them well. Everyone except for Diana. She had a feeling that there was something more between the two, especially when Tabitha made the decision to move back completely to Gotham City. She had selfishly wondered if Tabitha had broken Bruce's ankle on purpose only to get closer to him…

She was going to be nice and approach them; she wasn't going to ignore them or simply leave. However, she made sure that she waited until everyone else left before she came up to them.

"Just to let you know… I don't approve of this one bit."

"Diana…"

"I should have known that something was going on between the two of you. I never thought that you would actually go through with it, Bruce. It makes me feel that your little speech about not dating colleagues was just an excuse."

"Now hold on…" Tabitha definitely did not like the way Diana had approached the two. She had a feeling that the woman would not approve but she thought that she would be woman enough to cast her jealous emotions aside and wish the two well.

Diana slightly glared at Tabitha as she tried to intercept her words.

"And, here I thought that we were friends…"

"… You know what, Diana; I thought the same thing. But, friends don't drive other people away!" she had bitten her tongue long enough. While she had given up on ever getting back together with J'onn, it still bothered her that Diana was the one who put in his head to leave altogether. All she had to do was not say a word to him and the Martian would at least have still been on Watchtower.

The comment was enough to make her stop seething and look at Tabitha in slight confusion.

"What? I've never driven anyone away…"

"Oh, yeah? So, I guess we're missing a member just for the hell of it? If you don't approve of our relationship, fine; you don't have to come to the wedding! But, you got no right questioning Bruce's feelings for **anyone**! If he really wanted to be with you… he would've…" her words shocked even Bruce. She grabbed Bruce's hand tightly and began dragging him away, "I'm tired. Goodnight, Diana." she finished and the two turned to leave. Diana could do nothing but stand there and watch, thinking about what Tabitha had said.


End file.
